Here's What Has Been Keeping Me Busy

Working on another candidate for our quilt guild potholder swap.

The pieced strip is a leftover from something or other.

Enough for these four potholders -

plus the piece I'm holding

that is

just the size for

Mug Rug

Think I'll make a few more pot holders then cut the binding strips.

Yes, I'll be cutting those strips with the GO! cutter and die.

I'll machine sew the first side of the binding to the potholders

then finish by hand stitching

while I sit in the evening.

KPKPKPKPKPKPKPKPKPKPKP

Hang Ten

at the point where the gusset is finished.

This is the first time I've knit the heel in this manner.

These sox are worked from the cuff down.

The cuff is resting at the bottom of these pics.

The photo below shows

The center of the heel is located at my thumb

with the gusset increases between my thumb and index finger.

Just one row short of being ready to begin the

heel portion that curves around my heel and becomes the sole

portion.

I hope to make fast progress and finish these by next weekend.

# # # # # # # # # #

French Kiss -  -  -  -  -  -  -  Don't You Wish

Bought French Kiss last week and got around to putting it on

mid-week.

Went shopping the next day and picked up Don't You Wish

to tone down the blue.

Yep!   Lookin' Good ! ! ! 

+ ♥ + ♥ + ♥ + ♥ + ♥ + ♥ + 

More gloom and rain .  .  .  . sigh .  .  .  .

Hey,Thanks for stopping by.

Love when you visit.

Hugs

This Afternoon

Right after we drove into the garage from having lunch out

the tornado siren went off.

Spent the next two hours downstairs listening to the scanner and radio 

for storm reports.

While there was no extreme weather in our neighborhood,

just west of town a sheriff's car was turned onto its side with the deputy inside.

However, Mother Nature showed her nasty side.

About fifty miles to the west a tornado touched down and did it's damage to part of a neighborhood.

# # # # # # # #

Once the siren's ceased to blare and the sky turned from black to just cloudy and rainy we saw that we had received an inch of rain.

No wind damage.

+ + + + + + + +

So this is what I worked on

the rest of the afternoon.

Our quilt guild is having a pot holder swap so

I'm playing with some ideas

while hoping to end up with potholders

that I can use to swap.

Otherwise family will be getting potholders.

Not certain how many layers of Insul-Brite and batt to use.

Any suggestions?

88888888888

hugs

♥  ♥   ♥   ♥   ♥

Fancy Threads art quilt group challenge

Just got home from our monthly get together of Fancy Threads.

Our group of quilters who our interested in stretching our creativity

gave ourselves of bit of a challenge last month.

We each brought a twelve-inch-square of fabric and one embellishment.

A half dozen of us took up the challenge.

Our challenge is to make a 'quilt' any size from 4"x6" to 30" square

using a bit of each fabric

each of the embellishments

and any other fabric/embellishment of our choice if we feel the need.

Here's most of my background using four of the six fabrics

Not too bad a selection, right ?

Well, here's where it gets to the challenge

These are the two remaining fabrics 

and the embellishments.

and a little closer view

How, oh, how am I to integrate this into 'art' ! ! ! 

Oh, I do love the challenge ! ! ! 

I'll keep you posted, hopefully my idea will pan out.

It needs just a little more tweaking.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Susan , who IMHO is a mistress of longarm machine artistry,

Okay, okay, see for yourself if her recent quilt isn't wonderful, take a visit to Susan's Sunrise Quilt Studio

but don't forget to come back here and finish reading my post.

Anyway, Susan brought her copy of 

Art Quilting Studio  Winter 2010

[so many ideas, so little time]

this issued is packed with wonderful creative ideas

So the three of us who came to today's group

Annie, Susan and me

decided to use this issue as a basis for our next several months.

The first thing we're going to attempt

- - -  ta-daaaa - - - 

photo-transferring to fabric using Ink Jet printing.

wooo-eeeee ! ! 

#  #  #  #  #  #  #

Recently Interweave had a couple of video's for a dime each.

Lyric Kinard

was one of the artists

Much to my surprise when I downloaded her video for a dime

the dang video was some like an hour long

[Actually the other video about the same length

features  Malka Dubrawsky ]

-  -  -  -

So, I've had this foil since forever wanting to give it a try but not really understanding the instructions.

Look at the selection!

Just sitting, waiting for it's time to shine.

Lo and behold, Lyric shows how to foil using WonderUnder.

Today was the perfect time to give it a try

not one of the three of us had 'foiled'

I traced out a star onto WonderUnder,

cut it out.

Applied it to my fabric

then

laid the foil [color side UP ! ! ]

placed a piece of parchment paper atop, just in case,

and pressed using my iron

Let it cool and pulled off the foil sheet

in the light enough to shine

not so much in the light

and a closer view.

The fabric is still soft and pliable.

There's no stopping me now ! ! ! 

^ V ^ V ^ V ^

hugs

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥

1 Choice 4 Quilting

1 Choice 4 Quilting
is having one honking giveaway
there's no way we can not win !
Check it out

Winners - We have WINNERS ! ! !

Here's the BIG announcement ! ! ! 

Hubby has the task of drawing the winning name.

He's picked the WINNER of the Fabric and pre-cut tumbler blocks:

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

! ! ! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Debbie of  Jerusalem Notes: Fiberwork by Debbie

She's a quiltartist, embroiderer, crocheter, knitter, sewist and blogger.

Debbie, send me your mailing info

and I'd really, really appreciate if you send me some handi-dandi tips on the best way to send this to you.
You can use my email address found on My Complete Profile page.

# # # # # # # #

The rest of you can turn those frowns into smiles

since I want to send a little something to each of you.

Sooooo,

you lovelies who entered and did not win the BIG prize

please, send me your mailing info so that I can get a envelope out to you.
You can use my email address found on My Complete Profile page.

In the meantime, perhaps you'd like to take time to visit each other's blogs

♥  Tracey, whose blog clover is all about her

love of photography, gardening and family.

She lives in the Southern Lowcountry.

♥  Paula's blog, JC Earth Angel, 

Paula has not been blogging too long and is getting into the swing of posting.

She lives here in mid-Missouri.

♥  Hummingbird Treasures

 is Marie's blog.  Marie lives in North Carolina.

♥  Don't forget to take a swing by Debbie's blog.

If you gals send your mailing info I can get  an envelope out right away.

hugs

♥♥♥♥

HANG TEN

Oh, this one's a whole lot easier than 

Goldenrod Pointelle.

Hang Ten

designed by Wendy Gaal

see my previous post

from

Knitters Brewing Company

caught my eye at very first glance.

Though it was shown in a wonderful shade of blue,

this minty green Cascade Heritage that I used on Hedera III

is such a great yarn to work with that I decided on using it for my version.

This is how it looks with the cuff chart completed.

#  #  #

Now I'll begin the leg portion

which involves

Chart A,

Chart B

and, Chart C.

-  -   -  -

Everything else is on hold for the time being,

even the painting of my ex-darkroom.

Since photography  - b&w, slides, etc. - has gone by the way-side

I've been using the room for other hobbies.

I've gotten the bug that I want the room 

white

with pink accents

so yesterday I cut-in the ceiling and walls.

Will roll the rest when the mood strikes.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

It is HOT IN MID-MISSOURI ! ! ! ! 

90  plus a little bit today

very, very high 80s yesterday.

Yikes

What happened to spring?

hugs

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Strick-ly Socks and 36 Hippos

Recently while browsing around, 

I joined a

Rav group Knitters Brewing Co  Sock-aholics

You know how it goes

 one click lead to another

and I found myself reading

Knitter's Brewing Co. blog

I don't know whether it was this podcast

Episode 8 involving Blue Finger Nail Polish and Hang Ten

but as soon as I saw these blue nails and then the blue sox

I knew those sox were destine to get cast on my needle.

Several days late it was announced that Hang Ten was this month's KAL

I was IN!

even if I do have four pair actively on needles

Hang Ten socks

I cast on right then and there.

[photos later]

Would you believe 

the next day I received a note from socalknitgal - Wendy.

Wendy is the Moderator for the Rav group

Wendy wrote to say

I had WON ! ! ! ! 

Knitters Brewing Co. monthly giveaway draw

Looky, looky,  look what I won! ! ! !   

Just as soon as this book hits my mailbox, yahoo ! ! ! 

More sox, here I come

Strickly Socks by Candace Eisner Strick.  

~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

Okay, alright.  I hear you.  Enough about me

EXCEPT

to say

I WANT 

TO DO

A 

GIVEAWAY ! ! ! !

What say, the thirty-six 6.5" tumbler blocks in this print

[these were cut with my Accu-Quilt GO! cutter die, by the way]

and

the thirty-eight 6.5" tumbler blocks in this Kona solid

also cut with my GO! die cutter

and

two yards of the Kona solid

is going to make up The TUMBLER BLOCKS GIVEAWAY

wow! isn't that an imaginative title ...

I really want to call it the 36 Hippo Giveaway

but in truth, not each block has a hippo   : >( 

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Just to be fair,

let's call the cut-off date for Comments for this you-do-the-work giveaway

Saturday morning, whenever I get up and around to read my g-mail.

Hubby will dip his hand into the basket of names 

and will pick

the winner ! ! 

I'll do a quick blog post letting everyone know

then

I'll e-mail the winner so that I can have a mailing address.

THE package will be on it's way to YOU Monday morning.

Oh, yes, the Saturday morning in question is

Saturday, May 14th.

If you are truly interested in winning this giveaway

be certain to have your Comment

include a link to your email.

No Link, No Chance.
Comments are now closed.
Hubby will draw the winner right after we eat dinner.
Who's it gonna be ! ! ! ! 

-  -  -  -  -  -  -

Guess what Hubby just brought in from the mail box.

It's the Strick-ly Socks book ! ! 

Wendy just notified me of my winning on the 4th

and here it is the 7th

AND MY BOOK IS HERE.

Thank you, Wendy.

Hugs to every one,

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥   ♥

Another Row

Before dawn's early light this morning

I added a round to the entire six socks.

i.e., a round means one round.  

Doesn't sound like much

but

one by one by one does make headway - - - -

eventually.

The heel flaps are finished and now it's 

Gusset Time.

Once the extra stitches that were picked up on each side of the heel flap

are decreased away

it will be smmoooth sailing for the foot section.

Keeping the yarn organized is taken care of by

keeping the yarn ball inside each sock.

Oh, Rats, my lovely Pink has an orange tinge here on the blog.

Trust me, it is Pink.

hugs

♥   ♥   ♥   ♥   ♥